Hollis Bredeweg

Monday, April 27, 2009

Sigma BC506

I must thank my son, Evan, for introducing me to the bicycle computer. My Sigma BC506 5-Function Topline Wired Bicycle Speedometer is a wonder to behold. Sitting atop my handlebars, it cycles through the time of day, trip distance, total distance, and riding time, while continuously displaying riding speed to the nearest one-half mile per hour (or kilometers per hour for Kiwis and Canadians).

Thanks to my Sigma BC506 I know that I have already ridden 75 miles this spring, despite our unseasonably cold weather. I wouldn't have guessed more than 63.

Of all the functions of my bike computer, the most intriguing is the riding time indicator. It only registers time while the wheels are in motion. This morning for example, during my ride downtown to buy coffee beans, I rode for about 43 minutes, though I was gone from the house for about an hour. The missing 17 minutes were the result of shopping at Four Seasons Coffee Roastery and Two-Wheel Transit, stopping at traffic signals, and one quick water break halfway up the hill on my homeward way.

Thinking about my bike computer's riding time indicator, I began fantasizing about a life computer to match. A lower end model, like the LifeCalc 427DC, would display how much time I spent in motion. Such a model would be fine if I bought into the thinking of some in my family and many in our culture that working or doing is everything. With this model I would be better prepared when well-meaning people ask me, "So, what do you do?"

For my money, the LifeCalc 427QBC, though more complicated, would be a better choice. It would display the quality of all my time, rather than simply totaling my activity. For example, intentionally doing nothing is infinitely superior to having nothing to do. And there's the difference between a good night's sleep and a long night's staring at the ceiling. Quiet contemplation (Be the still pond...) has solved many seemingly intractable problems when frenetic activity (When in worry, when in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout...) has failed miserably.

So how about getting yourself a life computer? REI or Amazon might carry them. Costco might as well, but only in an 11-pack with matching gloves.